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Steam Locomotive - Ab608

This is a livery for the in-game Steam Flyer locomotive. It can be found under 'Flyer Advanced' on the livery page.

The Ab Class were designed by the New Zealand Railways and built between 1915 and 1927. With a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement, a tractive effort of 20,030 pounds and a Vanderbilt style tender with capacity for 4 tonnes of coal and 16,000 litres of water, they were the ideal mixed-traffic locomotives for the railways at the time. With over 140 of the type built, they were easily the most numerous class of steam locomotives to run in New Zealand.

In the 1910s, the New Zealand Railways set to work designing a new class of steam locomotive that would improve upon the earlier A Class of 1906. Among the features fitted to the Abs was a superheated boiler and new cylinders. Emerging from the Addington Workshops in 1915 was the prototype locomotive - Ab608. The locomotive sported a completely different design to that of the earlier A Class, with an entirely new cab, boiler and tender design, and an increased tractive effort. Entering service in October 1915, Ab608 was used to conduct a number of tests against the A Class to ultimately determine which locomotive design was best. Unsurprisingly, Ab608 came out as superior.

Assigned to the South Island, the early life of Ab608 presumably went on like every other steam locomotive in operation at that time. In 1920, Ab608 saw a brief break from routine when it was assigned to haul the Prince of Wales' royal train around the South Island. Then, on August 4th, 1923, Ab608 was the leading locomotive on the official train from Christchurch to Arthur’s Pass for the opening ceremony of the 8.5km long Otira Tunnel - which was, at the time, the longest tunnel in the Commonwealth.

In 1925, New Zealand Railways selected the locomotive to be displayed at the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition in Dunedin, alongside the historic 1872-built double fairlie locomotive E175 “Josephine.” It was thought that the locomotive should be given a name if it was to be displayed at the exhibition, and the Minister of Railways, Gordon Coates, agreed that the locomotive could be named in memory of the over 5,000 New Zealand railwaymen who died in World War I. After considering and rejecting the names ‘Ypres', ‘Le Quesnoy’, and ‘Somme’, the name ‘Passchendaele’ was selected. Two brass plaques, each bearing the name ‘Passchendaele’ and a short message, were cast and affixed to each side of the locomotive. Repainted up to exhibition standards, Ab608 and her new plaques were formally unveiled by Governor-General Sir Charles Fergusson on November 17th, 1925, as part of the opening ceremony for the exhibition.

Following the closing of the exhibition on May 1st, 1926, Ab608 was put back into service with the Railways, now sporting it’s Passchendaele memorial plaques. The following year, Ab608 was assigned to haul another royal train - this time, for the Duke and Duchess of York.

During World War II, New Zealand Railways struggled to keep Ab608 in a presentable condition and so decided to remove the plaques as they felt they could no longer justify it being a war memorial in it’s existing state. Subsequently, both plaques were put on display, with one displayed at Dunedin Railway Station and one at Christchurch Station, where they can still be found to this day. (The Christchurch plaque has since been moved to the new Christchurch Station).

In 1963, New Zealand Railways was celebrating 100 years since the beginning of rail in New Zealand, and as part of these celebrations, they were hosting a locomotive exhibition at Christchurch Station. Ab608 was selected to represent it’s class at the exhibition and it was decided to bring back the loco’s Passchendaele plaques. Rather than bringing back the original plaques, it was decided to fabricate two new replica plaques for the locomotive, and these plaques were subsequently affixed to the locomotive in place of the originals.

Following the centenary of railways exhibition, Ab608 returned to service with New Zealand Railways, now wearing it’s new plaques, for a further five years until it was withdrawn from service in October 1967 facing boiler issues. Upon the withdrawal of the locomotive, New Zealand Railways recognised the historical significance of the locomotive and decided to donate Ab608 to the New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society for preservation. The locomotive was transferred to the Linwood Locomotive Depot in Christchurch, where it was put into storage along with a group of other locomotives ultimately destined for the Ferrymead Railway. Ab608 was finally moved to Ferrymead in 1978, and was put on static display outside, with no intentions for a restoration to running order. The locomotive sat here, exposed to the elements (albeit under a shelter) for over ten years.

In 1991, Steam Incorporated approached the New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society to inquire whether they were interested in leasing Ab608 to Steam Inc for restoration to mainline operating condition. Needless to say, they were, and in November 1993, Ab608 was towed North from Ferrymead behind Steam Inc’s own J1234. That locomotive had just completed a charter excursion on the Midland Line, and was now returning to Paekākāriki. Crossing the Cook Strait, Ab608 arrived in Wellington and subsequently made it’s way up to Paekākāriki, marking the first time it had ever been in the North Island.

Upon arrival in Paekākāriki, the locomotive was put into storage awaiting it’s turn for an overhaul. Following the completion of Ja1271 in 1997, the Ab was moved into the workshop to begin an overhaul. However, after dismantling and assessing the locomotive, it was found to be in a much poorer condition than had been anticipated. All those years of being parked outside at Ferrymead had taken it’s toll. Combined with the society suffering from financial issues, the restoration of the locomotive was put on hiatus. By the early 2000s, the situation had improved, and work could resume. It was realised that a whole new tender body would be required, as the original was in such a poor condition that it really couldn’t be saved. The boiler required extensive work, and many components have had to be completely replaced due to their condition. The restoration of Ab608 was completed in early 2014, having been done to an incredibly high standard and cost over $500,000. Today, the locomotive is in service with Steam Incorporated.

SOURCES:
Passchendaele Memorial Loco Ab608 | Steam Incorporated
Passchendaele Memorial Locomotive | NZ History
NZR Ab Class | Wikipedia